"County creates Sexual Assault Response Team" by: Mike Reddell

   A Sexual Assault Response Team (SART) was created to serve Matagorda County by a unanimous Commissioners Court at its meeting Monday, Nov. 29.
   State law (SB 476) requires all counties to create a SART to increase offender accountability, deliver services to survivors of sexual assault and provide “consistent responses to victims of sexual assault.”
   In addition, SART is charged with promoting an understanding that sexual assault is a major public health and criminal justice concern and to provide a victim-center approach to sexual assault.
   The team will include Bay City Police Chief Robert Lister, Palacios Police Chief Milton Rivera and Sheriff Skipper Osborne and the District Attorney’s office, said Kelli Wright-Nelson, executive director, Crisis Center Matagorda/Wharton Counties.
   All three law enforcement officials were present Monday.
   County Judge Nate McDonald read a lengthy resolution creating SART that will include a sexual assault nurse or forensic examiner and behavioral health services provider.
   The judge told Wright-Nelson the resolution was “very well written.”
   It’s unfortunate such a resolution is needed to address sexual assault survivors, McDonald said, “but there are some pretty sorry people out there.”
   Wright-Nelson told McDonald the Crisis Center will continue to educate the public about sexual assault.
   “Anytime we can get in and speak we do that,” she said.
   The chief administrator for SART is the Crisis Center and Bay City Police Sgt. Chris Hadash is the Crisis Center president.
   The Crisis Center served 429 total clients in fiscal 2021 (9/1/20-8/31/21) who identified as survivors of sexual assault, Wright-Nelson said.
   In response to a question from Precinct 2 Commissioner Kent Pollard about examinations, she said 91 clients received sexual assault forensic medical examinations at the Crisis Center forensic medical examination facility.
   Each partner in SART must complete four hours annually in cross-agency training in the team’s quarterly meeting.
   In other action, commissioners court:
   n Approved a replat of a lot at Colorado Front in Matagorda.
   n Hired Lesley Scardami as deputy county clerk at $12.12 per hour, due to her experience in records management at Comal County.
   Following the court’s closed session, it reconvened and approved a performance improvement plan for a county employee.
   The commissioners court meeting Nov. 22, occurred after the Sentinel’s print deadline that was moved up by the printer for Thanksgiving.
   At that meeting, the court approved scheduling Dec. 27 public hearings on suggested edits to the county’s economic development program and another for granting tax abatements in reinvestment zones and/or enterprise zones.